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Verhoeven is an A-list fixture in his home country, and recently wrapped filming on Road House 2 alongside Jake Gyllenhaal. His inner circle includes Kevin Hart and Max Verstappen, and even the King of the Netherlands is a fan.<\/p>\n
Away from Formula One paddocks and movie sets, Verhoeven’s story began amid a turbulent childhood in Bergen op Zoom, near the Belgian border. Raised initially by his mother, who struggled with alcohol and drug addiction, he moved in with his father aged six.<\/p>\n
“My dad came from Kyokushin karate,” Verhoeven says. “He got injured, started boxing, started kickboxing and people started asking him to teach.”<\/p>\n
His father coached with intense, unrelenting discipline.<\/p>\n
“Back then you’re like, ‘why can’t I do this? All my friends are going to the swimming pool tonight. I got to go and train’. Back then it didn’t make too much sense to me, but now I’m super thankful because those were the fundamentals of the discipline I have today.”<\/p>\n
Despite experiencing periods of painful distance, Verhoeven reconciled with his father before his death. <\/p>\n
He also rebuilt his bond with his mother, who passed away earlier this year during his training camp. Processing that grief has provided a sharp perspective on his own role as a parent.<\/p>\n
“Now especially having my own kids, it is [about] how are you going balance that,” Verhoeven says.<\/p>\n
“What are you going to project on them that worked for you? And what are you going project on them that didn’t work for you?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n